One More Thing

Oh yeah...one more thing. Now that we have precious little Luke, something is going to have to change...the name of this blog!

I started this blog six years ago a couple of months after Collins was born and have been going strong ever since. It has been a real joy for me to photograph, write about and record all these memories of our growing family. I would have never guessed it, but blogging has become a real hobby for me.

We started out as the "Tale of Three Forks" and then moved on to the "Tale of Four Forks". Now we're finally settled on the "Tale of Five Forks", and I think that is enough Forks. On with the blogging!

What I've Learned So Far With Three...

1. One cup of coffee is no longer enough.

2. Amazon Prime is my best friend.

3. The laundry is going to break me.

4. I have had to let a lot of things go.

5. My chocolate addiction is out of control.

6. Someone needs something at all times.

7. I cannot do it all.

8. Three takes multi-tasking to a whole new level.

9. I have never worked so hard.

10. I am one lucky girl!

A Sweet Sixth Birthday (Part 3)

Our girl finally did it...after days of celebrating she finally turned six!

Even though her birthday fell on a Monday (boo) and a school day (boo), it was okay because she started her day with a breakfast of homemade waffles and sausage and had several other fun things lined up...and doesn't she look every bit of a six in this cute outfit?

 In kindergarten, they can bring in a special treat to share with the class on their birthday. Collins's very smart choice? Howling Cow ice cream! Turns out they make those cute little individual size cups with the wooden spoons. So we took in chocolate and strawberry ice cream for the class, and they loved it! (But Collins did not love being the center of attention when Mrs. Dalrymple brought her up front to turn her six with the magic wand!)

After school, Collins got a nice surprise...Mimi and Baba were at her house! We all went to Bad Daddy's for dinner and then came home for her third and final birthday cake...a brownie cake!

It was extra special to have Mimi and Baba there to celebrate on her actual birthday!

It's hard to believe our baby is six. It's also hard to believe how we lucked out with such a kind, smart, creative and beautiful daughter, but we did. Collins we are so proud of how you have grown in the last year. You have become so mature and thoughtful and are so full of big thoughts and ideas. You have grown tall and strong, you are a great big sister, and you are always so sweet to your Mommy and Daddy. We can't wait to see what the next year holds for you, and we love you more every day (if that is even possible). Happy birthday sweetheart!

A Sweet Sixth Birthday (Part 2)

Donna was sweet to host birthday party #2 at her house. And Collins's choice for dinner? Red Dragon Chinese...another choice that made me laugh. Whatever the birthday girl wants, the birthday girl gets!

We also kept birthday cake #2 a surprise...a mint chocolate chip ice cream cake! (She had never had an ice cream cake before a few weeks ago and pretty much thought it was the best thing ever. So I thought she needed to have a Baskin Robbins cake for her bday.)

Collins was thrilled to find out that her first present was...roller skates! (What a great idea Gigi and Pop Pop.)

 A little shaky especially in the princess gown that she insisted on wearing to dinner...

Addie got to open a present too and loved the new shades...

Collins's other cool gift? Walkie-Talkies!

Yes, she insisted on wearing her skates home. Party #2 was a big success...how could it not be with Chinese food, roller skates, and ice cream cake? :)

A Sweet Sixth Birthday (Part 1)

For her sixth birthday, Collins decided to buck tradition and not have a conventional birthday party. Instead of having her friends and family over for a big blowout party, she decided she wanted a "Day of Collins" celebration where she got to choose whatever she wanted to do all day long. We thought this was a great idea! This was a good year to change things up, and she got really excited about her special day.

Well, you know how someone (who won't be mentioned) sometimes gets carried away with party planning and pretty soon that DAY of celebration became an extended WEEKEND of celebrating. We were lucky enough to have Dad, Heather and Alli in town on the same day so I knew we had party #1 right there. Then we made plans with Gigi and Pop Pop- which became party #2. And then Mom and Baba decided to come to town on Collins's actual birthday so party #3 was born! I thought three celebrations sounded better than one...especially when I had the idea to do three completely different birthday cakes! Collins was going to be in sugar heaven!

Since Collins is a Valentine's Eve baby, I decorated her party room with a heart theme (in various shades of pink of course).

When Addie got a giant gold "3" balloon for her birthday, Collins immediately asked me if she could have a giant pink "6" for hers?

 

Poppy and Nana came to town with the largest birthday present Collins had ever seen!

 

We all went out to Gonza's Tacos for dinner, and Collins did NOT like it when they came around with the cow bell to celebrate her birthday. Too loud (and embarrassing)!!!

 

 We came back to the house for her first birthday cake surprise...12 giant Gigi's Cupcakes!

 

 

  

 

 

 She opened a bunch of great presents, tackled that giant cupcake, and fell into bed excited for her "Day of Celebration" the next day.

I remarked to Brian as we were walking into the mall for my daughter's "party" how far I had fallen to let this happen! I must really be overwhelmed by life to agree to go to Build-a-Bear and the Disney Store for her special day...or maybe I am relaxing and letting go a little bit. This is what Collins really wanted to do! As you can see they ran they were so excited...

Even cute little Luke came along for the ride...

First on the agenda? Build-a-Bear! Poppy and Nana had gotten her a gift certificate to the store for her birthday so she had a lot of fun building "Fluffy" and "Amanda Panda"...as we all agreed that that store was just raking it in and why had we not thought of the concept?!?

 

Next stop? Disney Store for a princess Aurora gown...check!

 

  

Collins got to choose the lunch spot of course, and of all places, she chose Bojangles! We all thought it was funny that Heather (who had never eaten there before) was getting some "Bo Time" courtesy of the birthday girl...

 Last stop on the party train? The Pullen Park train!

 

 Luke's first trip on the train was pretty uneventful...

  

Collins loved her "Day of Celebration"! Having Dad, Heather and Alli there made it really special and fun for our almost-six-year-old!

Two Months with the "Super Baby"!

Know what two months means?? Quarantine is over! Per the doctor's orders, little Luke Fork did not leave his home except to go to Gigi's house or to the park for two whole months. That was not easy to do, but thanks to Donna and my Mom we were actually able to juggle schedules and keep Luke away from the germs. Hooray!

I was excited to go back to the doctor for his two month check-up to see how much he had grown (b/c you could really tell he was bigger). He had gained two whole pounds in a month and grown quite a bit longer. It is still hard for me to believe that he is growing so fast on my breast milk alone, but it is actually working. Dr. Gessner called Luke a "super baby" because when he held him up in the air horizontally, Luke was able to hold his head and legs way up. We knew he was strong, but it was nice to hear the doctor confirm it!

Other notable moments in Luke's second month...going on his first BOB ride (turns out he does NOT like it which is not good for Mama)...he's very alert now and able to focus on our faces...smiles frequently...loves his bath...coos at us with really sweet little sounds...favorite spot is in the Ergo taking a nap on me...and longest stretch of sleep was five hours!

We are loving our time with this super baby! :)